Nan Hayworth Faces Two Front War of Words on Payroll Tax

Earlier today, Rich Becker, a Democrat hoping to unseat Congresswoman Nan Hayworth in the 19th District next year, blasted her rejection of the payroll tax bill passed by the Senate as “extremism at its ugliest.” Now, Matt Alexander, Mr. Becker’s challenger in the Democratic primary, is joining in on the pileup. In an email sent to supporters, Mr. Alexander accused Congresswoman Hayworth of looking out for the interests of businesses rather than middle class families.

“You might have heard that the Senate passed a bipartisan deal to extend the payroll tax cut for middle class workers. This is a smart move, designed to help working families in a struggling economy. But the Tea Party members in the House, including Nan Hayworth, moved to block this sensible tax cut over the weekend,” Mr. Alexander wrote. “Even some of her Republican colleagues called the Boehner-Hayworth move ‘irresponsible,’ ‘wrong,’ and ‘jeopardizing the livelihoods of millions of Americans.'”

Mr. Alexander, who is mayor of the village of Wappingers Falls, criticized Congresswoman Hayworth’s desire to remove “regulatory burdens” on businesses as “muddled.”

“Here’s the thing,” Mr. Alexander wrote. “Rep. Hayworth is talking about the regulatory burdens for business, but what about the burdens for working families and the middle class trying to make ends meet?”

Mr. Alexander’s email ended with a request for donations.

“We can’t let Rep. Hayworth’s inaction stand in the way of much needed tax cuts and middle-class relief for the next year, let alone the next Congress,” he wrote.